A division of the Leipzig Opera and one of the busiest stages in Germany, the Musikalische Komödie (Musical Comedy) has installed a new sound system from Alcons Audio.

The focus of the venue – known far beyond the city limits as MuKo – is on operettas, musicals and, increasingly, also on ballet performances. As the previous sound system was dated and struggling to deliver, a modern solution was sought to satisfy the needs of the 520-seat, acoustically demanding room – and match the performance programme as well.

Leipzig-based HFE Professional Studio Technology served the project in an advisory capacity and installer for the system: ‘I’ve known Alcons Audio for a long time and recommended the LR7, because the system is in my opinion particularly well suited to theatre,’ Hans Hermann Hönsch from HFE explains. ‘In mid-2014 we organised a comparative listening session, where the heads of the Musikalische Komödie unanimously agreed to Alcons.’

The new PA system was installed while the venue served sporting events during the running season. It comprises six Alcons LR7/90 micro line-arrays with two LR7Bs as low frequency support per side, with four LR7/90 in the centre. In addition, two Alcons VR8 monitors have been installed on each side of the orchestra pit.

The auditorium can also be expanded to include three Alcons SR9 as front fill – an option that is currently only used during microport performances. In addition, two BF362 double-18-inch subwoofers are available for particularly bass-intensive applications. The entire system is powered by a Sentinel10 and three Sentinel3 4-channel amplified loudspeaker controllers.

Thus, Tobias Finke, Tonmeister and sound department manager, considers the theatre technically up-to-date: ‘The Musikalische Komödie is a very early concrete construction, arc-shaped with facets in the interior,’ he says. ‘This creates a few strange reflections and other unique hall effects. In addition, self-resonances are an issue. The room is excited by the PA quite severely. ‘All this had to be considered and controlled as much as possible.

‘This is where the Alcons LR7 fully demonstrate their strength – especially the line arrays sound at low sound pressure levels as good as at high levels, which cannot be claimed by all sound reinforcement systems. With pro-ribbon tweeters you do not have this typical “horn effect”; The speaker does not bellow at you, but has a very refined and even coverage. But even if it has to be more powerful, Alcons plays very well.’

‘In musicals, the location of the sound source plays an important role, and by arranging the front fill and centre, we have now solved our imaging problem very well,’ sound engineer Holger Weise adds. ‘You do not have to drive at such high levels, which is very pleasant. What surprised me a lot is that we have two separate subs that can be selected, but you do not really need them even during shows with complete live bands.’

‘In fact, we still have not used the subs,’ confirms Finke. ‘We once ran them against the built-in basses and found the latter more pleasant for our purposes. They do not go down quite so deep, but on the other hand they do not excite the room too much. The bass response of the LR7 series is really amazing.’

There is also positive feedback from audience and employees, especially regarding improved sound imaging: ‘The clarity in the reproduction has been noticed by many people – from musicians to technicians to our guests,’ Finke concludes.

Thus, the road of success continues for the Musikalische Komödie Leipzig.